Electric fan propelled merry-go-round



Aug. 23, 1960 D. R. FORBUSH 2,950,109

ELECTRIC FAN PROPELLED MERRY-GO-ROUND Filed April 3, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

ATTORNEYS.

Aug. 23, 1960 zllll lllll D. R. FORBUSH ELECTRIC FAN PROPELLED MERRY-GO-ROUND Filed April 3, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 QINVENTOR. L IS R. FORBUSHJ ATTORNEYS J www- ELECTRIC FAN PROPELLED MERRY-GO-ROUND Dellis R. Forbush, 1401 East 7400 South, Sandy, Utah Filed Apr. 3, 1957, Ser. No. 650,495

Claims. (Cl. 272-41) This invention relates to utility equipment of various types adapted to rotate during use and provided with motivating means to cause the rotation.

The invention is especially well adapted for childrens play equipment having characteristics similar to so-called merry-go-rounds. In connection with such use, it is well adapted to also provide a clothesline for the housewife which speeds up the drying of washing. Thus, in this form, the invention serves a combination of purposes, without the necessity of structurally altering the equipment for one or the other use.

A significant object of the invention is to provide motivated rotary utility equipment of exceptionally simple and economical construction, wherein the motive power is supplied by a rotary fan rigidly carried by the rotating part of the equipment at a location remote from the rotative axis of the latter.

Another object is to provide such equipment which can be easily disassembled, for moving from one place to another, :and easily reassembled.

A principal purpose of the invention is to provide fascinating play equipment for children, which can also be used by a housewife for hanging and drying washing.

Further objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the particular equipment illustrated in the accompanying drawings to exemplify the essential inventive and broadly useful characteristics and features claimed.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 represents a perspective view of a preferred form of combined childrens merry-go-round and rotary clothesline embodying the invention;

Fig. 2, an enlarged, fragmentary, axial, vertical section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1, intermediate and certain laterally extending parts being broken away for convenience of illustration, and certain other laterally extending parts being removed to indicate how the structure can be easily disassembled;

Fig. 3, a horizontal section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2 and drawn to a scale somewhat enlarged over that of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4, a view similar to that of Fig. 1 drawn to a considerably reduced scale and illustrating similar equipment having greater seating capacity.

Referring to the drawings:

The illustrated merry-go-round play equipment for children conforms to the structural and functional concepts of the invention and inherently embodies facilities for hanging and drying the family wash. It comprises a stationary supporting standard 10, rotary structure 11 mounted for rotation on the standard and extending laterally therefrom, a rotary fan 12 rigidly attached to and carried by the rotary structure 11 laterally remote from the axis of rotation of the latter, and means in the form of an electric motor 13 and electrical supply components therefor for motivating such fan 12.

The supporting standard 10 in this form of the invention 2 is hollow, being advantageously provided by a length of steel pipe 14 rising from a base made up of elongate and widespread feet 15.

Each of the feet 15 is made up of a lower rod member 16 and an upper rod member 17, the two members being preferably flattened at corresponding ends and welded together, as at 18. The opposite end of the lower member 16 of each foot assembly is preferably squared, as at 16a, Fig. 2, and provided with a threaded stem extension, which passes through a corresponding receiving aperture in the lower end of pipe 14, as indicated, and has a securement nut 19 threaded thereon and cinched tightly against such pipe. The opposite end of the upper member 15 of each foot assembly is beveled, so as to abut firmly against pipe 1 4, see Fig. 1, the several ends being rigidly secured together in their respective abutting positions by means of a unitary and rigid tie plate 20 of hollow square formation tightly bolted to the rod ends. It can be seen that, as so constructed, the feet 15, may be easily removed and replaced with respect to pipe 14.

The rotary structure 11 comprises, in this instance, a hub 21 in the form of an inverted bowl having socket members 21a extending radially therefrom. Radially extending arms 22 are fitted into and extend from the respective socket members 21a. Such arms 22 are preferably lengths of pipe, and are advantageously secured within their respective socket members by means of set screws 23. Reinforcing rods 24 are welded to the respective arms 22 at corresponding ends, see 24a, and have their opposite ends threaded and equipped with respective nuts to provide bolt formations 2 4b, Fig. 2, which are tightly cinched to an upward extension 21b of hub 21. The bolt ends 24b of the rods pass through receiving apertures 25 in hub extension 21b.

An important addition to the structural reinforcement of the rotary structure is a length of cable 26 encircling the axially remote ends of the arms 22 and cinched tight by a standard tensioning device 27. The ends of the respective arms are suitably notched, for example as illustrated at 22a in Fig. 1, to receive the cable and to prevent it from slipping off such arms. The cable may be of braided wire or may be a single strand of heavy Wire or the equivalent.

As thus constructed, the respective arms 22 and attached reinforcing rods 24 may be easily disassembled from the hub 21 for transportation or storage.

Such rotary structure 11 may be mounted for rotation on the standard '10 in any suitable manner, but preferably by means including antifriction bearings. As here shown, Fig. 2, an elongate bearing housing 28 depends deeply within pipe 14 from an integral suspension collar 28a resting on the upper rim of such pipe. Set screws 29 serve to stabilize and accurately position such housing. Mounted within opposite ends of the housing 28 are respective roller bearings 30 and 31, which, in turn, receive and journal a stub shaft 32. The upper end of stub shaft 32 is tapered and projects beyond the housing. It has secured thereon an attachment fitting 33 to which is rigidly bolted the hub 21. A nut 34 secures the assembly tightly together.

The rotary fan 12 which motivates the rotary structure 11 is, in this illustrated construction, telescopically mounted on a bracket arm 35, see Fig. 2, and is directed substantial-1y tangentially of the path of rotation of the rotary structure, so as to exert horizontal thrust when operating. A collar 36 clamped around the fan motor 13 has a stub mounting stem 37 depending therefrom and telescopically received by bracket arm 35 to which it is tightly secured by means of a set screw 38. The fan is advantageously enclosed in a protective grid 39, Fig. 1.

Fan 12 is motivated by plugging its electrical lead wires rings 43 a nd 44 carried by an insulating collarAS secured to attachment fitting, 33. Suchrings {13. and 4 4 are energized by rotating contact with brush elements 46 and 47, respectively, which are electrically connected to electrical supply leads 48 and '49, respectively, extending upwardly through the hollow of pipe 14 from an electrical plug 50 mounted near the base of pipe 14 and adapted to have an electrical extension cord plugged thereinto. L

To complete theequipment as a merry-go-round for children, seating means are suspended from the free end portions ofthe respective arms 22. As here illustrated, eye-type suspension fittings 51 are anchored in suitable receiving holes drilled through the axially remote ends of such arms 22. Swing type seats 52 are suspended from the respective fittings 51 by means of respective hooks 53. Accordingly, children seated in the respective swings 52 are carried around with the rotary structure 11 as driven by the fan 12. The swings provide a motion additional to the rotary motion of the structure 11, by reason of their substantially universal articulative attachment to the respective arms 22.

The cable 26 may be used as a clothesline by a housewife, and, if desired, the swings 52 may be unhooked and removed during this use. Rotation of the clothes and an accompanying drying action is effected by the fan 12.

The provision of additional cables, here indicated 53', at intervals along the lengths of the arms 22 afiords extra structural reinforcement and extra clothesline capacity.

The embodiment of Fig. 4 is similar in all respects to the foregoing embodiment, except for the provision of additional arms 22 and swings 52. Because of the greater capacity, a fan 12 and its accompanying equipment is mounted at each one of a pair of diametrically opposed, axially remote ends of mutually aligned arms 22, thereby providing additional motivating power.

Whereas this invention is here illustrated and described with respect to specific embodiments thereof, it should be realized that changes may be made within the scope of the following claims, without departing from the essential contributions to the art made by the teachings hereof.

I claim:

1. A merry-go-round for children, comprising a stationary supporting standard; rotary structure, including a hub in the form of an inverted bowl rotatably mounted on said standard for rotation about a substantially vertical axis, a plurality of arms radiating outwardly from securement to said hub, at least one of said arms being hollow, a hollow bracket secured adjacent the terminus of said hollow arm, and structural reinforcement means tying said arms and hub into a weight-suspension unit; means for suspending seats from the free end portions of the respective arms; an electric motor and rotary fan unit mounted together on said hollow bracket above the level of the seat suspending means with the fan directed substantially tangentially of the path of rotation of said rotary structure so as to exert horizontal thrust when operating; and means for supplying electric current to said motor, said means including a commutator assembly carried by the supporting standard and disposed within the bowl of said hub, and supply wiring extending from the commutator assembly to the motor within and through said hollow arm and bracket.

2. The merry-go-round of claim .1, wherein the hub is formed with arm-receiving sockets and the arms are fitted into the sockets, respectively; and the structural reinforcement also includes a length of cable extending around the free end portions of the several arms and slidably secured thereto, and tensioning means securing opposite ends of the cable together.

3. The merry-go-round of claim 2, wherein the structural reinforcement means include an upward extension of the hub, and rods associated with the respective arms and extending from the hub extension to the free end portions of the respective arms, being secured to both the hub and the respective arms, and wherein the rods are welded to the respective arms, but have their opposite ends formed as bolts which pass through corresponding apertures in the hub extension and are connected to the latter.

4. The merry-go-round of claim 1, wherein the supporting standard is hollow, the rotary structure is mounted for rotation thereon by means comprising an elongate bearing housing fitted into the upper end of said standard and having bearings at opposite ends thereof, a stub shaft journaled in said bearings and projecting upwardly beyond said housing, and attachment structure rigidly connecting the projecting portion of said shaft with the hub, and the means for supplying electric current further includes supply wiring extending upwardly through said standard, between the inner walls thereof and said hearing housing.

5. The merry-go-round of claim 1, wherein the seat suspending means comprises eyelets secured to and depending from the free termini of the respective arms, one for each arm; and swings are articulatively suspended from the respective eyelets, one to each eyelet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,159,217 Harreld Nov. 2, 1915 1,593,720 Hanson July 27, 1926 1,616,476 Traver Feb. 8, 1927 2,239,542 Stanzel Apr. 22, 1941 

